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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — all right
  5. bound — tied together
  6. chest — of your body
  7. mug — a cup
  8. bound — certain
  9. face — part of the head
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. face — to confront
  12. field — farmland
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. kick — in football
  15. field — for sport
  16. snap — to click
  17. face — to point toward
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bound — obliged
  20. chest — a box
  21. mug — a face
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. field — a subject
  24. mug — to rob

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com